Yep. The hype is warranted with Firekeeper’s Daughter. It grabbed me from the beginning and didn’t let go until the last page. Boulley has written exceptional YA, mixed with thriller and family drama, that sheds light on so many important issues, while being much needed representation for indigenous people in published literature.

One thought I kept coming back to after reading it, was how the history that has been whitewashed in our schooling I inevitably learn through novels or film. I finished this book just before the 215 murdered children’s bodies were found at the residential school in Canada. There are parts of Firekeeper’s Daughter that address these schools, and my thoughts also went to Anne with an E on Netflix, which my daughter and I devoured this year. The show took liberties with LM Montgomery’s source material and included a storyline about an indigenous girl taken from her family. It was excruciating for us to watch, yet so important to understand. I am glad that if kids aren’t being exposed to atrocities we need to learn from in school (yet), they will learn about them through books and other art forms.